I was just thinking about this, and haven’t read anything directly addressing it.
Basically, it’s funny because with my interests in music like Lindstrom and Prins Thomas and Todd Terje, I realize it’s sort of like a culmination of several trends that started in the 1990s, in several musical genres–basically, all modern underground music can be traced back to 60s/70s funk, prog rock, and jazz fusion.
Starting out in the 1990s:
Drive Like Jehu, Fucking Champs/Don Caballero=bringing back King Crimson/Mahavishnu Orchestra/Yes/Gentle Giant etc 1970s prog rock with funky drums, exposing indie rockers to the source music with its occasional analog synths and funk-and jazz-derived drums and bass rhythms. Pink Floyd and King Crimson are no longer anathema to your previously anti-70s rock indie kids.
Stereolab & Six Finger Satellite: brining back 1970s jazz fusion and library music with analog synths & disco & prog touches. Pink Floyd and King Crimson are no longer anathema to your previously anti-70s rock indie kids.
Daft Punk & Air: bringing back 1970s Italo disco and jazz fusion and funk and analog synths with prog touches. Pink Floyd and King Crimson are no longer anathema to your previously anti-70s rock indie kids.
Madlib and some Just Blaze: brining back through samples 1970s jazz fusion and library music heavy with analog synths and prog touches. Samples include Supertramp, Styx, Frank Zappa, Jefferson Airplane, and obscure library music, prog, and jazz fusion samples.
Basically it’s turned out that jazz fusion and prog rock summed up everything worthwhile in music; creativity, experimentalism, tempered and purposeful improvisation, willingness to take bits from any musical genres (classical, jazz, funk, disco, metal, etc.)
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